Victory Over Thiem My Greatest Ever: Ramkumar Ramanathan

India's search for the next singles star in tennis could end with the rise of young sensation Ramkumar Ramanathan, who stunned world number 8 Dominic Thiem in straight sets to progress into the quarters of the Antalya Open in Turkey on Tuesday.

New Delhi: India's search for the next singles star in tennis could end with the rise of young sensation Ramkumar Ramanathan, who stunned world number 8 Dominic Thiem in straight sets to progress into the quarters of the Antalya Open in Turkey on Tuesday.

Ramanathan was at his devastating best against the Austrian, getting the better of the top seed in straight sets 6-3, 6-2 in just an hour to progress into the next round. Speaking exclusively to CNN-News18 the Chennai boy said that his hardwork has started to pay off finally.

"All my hardwork has paid off, this is just the start for me. I hope to build on this success," Ramanathan said in an exclusive interview.

Thiem, who has in the recent past got the better of big names like Rafael Nadal, Novak Djokovic and Roger Federer, is primarily a clay-court specialist and this where Ramanathan's planning came to good use.

"I was nervous playing against player like Thiem who has got the better of stars like Nadal and Djokovic, but I had a plan. Had seen he had certain weaknesses on grass and played my game accordingly," the youngster said.

Ramanathan, who is currently part of the Indian Davis Cup team, rose to prominence when he beat Somdev Devvarman in the 2014 Chennai Open at the age of 19 as an unseeded player. His next major goal is to break into the top hundred of the ATP rankings.

"Right now I am just focussing on my game and working with new coach Emilio Sanchez has really helped. Would be great to break into the top 100 by the end of the year but that is not my sole focus," the current world 222 signed off.